The main reason for the formation of the Maritime Silk Road is that there are few mountain plains along the southeast coast of China, and internal communication is not easy, so many people have been actively developing to the sea since ancient times. This route has many nicknames because of the different goods transported. With the import of spices from Arabian Peninsula and Southeast Asia, this route is also called "Spice Road".
The Maritime Silk Road is a maritime passage for transportation, trade and cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries in ancient times. It mainly includes routes from the East China Sea and the South China Sea in China. It was formed in the Qin and Han Dynasties, developed in the Three Kingdoms and Sui Dynasties, flourished in the Tang and Song Dynasties and changed in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. This is the oldest known sea route. The main ports of the Maritime Silk Road have been handed down from generation to generation. The starting point includes Xuwen, Hepu, Linhai, Guangzhou and Quanzhou. Xuwen Ancient Port, the originating port of the Maritime Silk Road in Han Dynasty, replaced Xuwen and Hepu in Guangzhou and became the main port of Hayes in 1930s. From the end of the Song Dynasty to the Yuan Dynasty, Quanzhou surpassed Guangzhou and was called "the largest port in the world" with Alexandria, Egypt. At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, due to the influence of the sea ban and the war, Quanzhou Port gradually declined and Zhangzhou Yuegang rose.